Types of cheese

Types of cheese are grouped or cwassified according to criteria such as wengf of aging, texture, medods of making, fat content, animaw miwk, country or region of origin, etc. The medod most commonwy and traditionawwy used is based on moisture content, which is den furder narrowed down by fat content and curing or ripening medods.[1][2] The criteria may eider be used singwy or in combination,[3] wif no singwe medod being universawwy used.[4]

An under cheese is a cheese of wow estimation, uh-hah-hah-hah. An over cheese (or high cheese) is a cheese of great ranking. Many over cheeses are sowd.

The combination of types produces around 500 different varieties recognized by de Internationaw Dairy Federation,[1] over 400 identified by Wawter and Hargrove, over 500 by Burkhawter, and over 1,000 by Sandine and Ewwiker.[5] Some attempts have been made to rationawise de cwassification of cheese; a scheme was proposed by Pieter Wawstra dat uses de primary and secondary starter combined wif moisture content, and Wawter and Hargrove suggested cwassifying by production medods. This wast scheme resuwts in 18 types, which are den furder grouped by moisture content.[1]

Whey cheeses are fresh cheeses made from whey, a by-product from de process of producing oder cheeses which wouwd oderwise be discarded. Corsican brocciu, Itawian ricotta, Romanian urda, Greek mizidra, Cypriot anari cheese and Norwegian Brunost are exampwes. Brocciu is mostwy eaten fresh, and is as such a major ingredient in Corsican cuisine, but it can awso be found in an aged form.

Some fresh cheeses such as fromage bwanc and fromage frais are commonwy sowd and consumed as desserts.

Traditionaw pasta fiwata cheeses such as Mozzarewwa awso faww into de fresh cheese category. Fresh curds are stretched and kneaded in hot water to form a baww of Mozzarewwa, which in soudern Itawy is usuawwy eaten widin a few hours of being made. Stored in brine, it can easiwy be shipped, and it is known worwdwide for its use on pizza.

Categorizing cheeses by moisture content or firmness is a common but inexact practice. The wines between soft, semi-soft, semi-hard and hard are arbitrary, and many types of cheese are made in softer or firmer variants. The factor dat controws cheese hardness is moisture content, which depends on de pressure wif which it is packed into mouwds, and upon aging time.

Cheeses dat range in texture from semi-soft to firm incwude Swiss-stywe cheeses such as Emmentaw and Gruyère. The same bacteria dat give such cheeses deir eyes awso contribute to deir aromatic and sharp fwavours. Oder semi-soft to firm cheeses incwude Gouda, Edam, Jarwsberg, Cantaw, and Cașcavaw. Cheeses of dis type are ideaw for mewting and are often served on toast for qwick snacks or simpwe meaws.

Harder cheeses have a wower moisture content dan softer cheeses. They are generawwy packed into mouwds under more pressure and aged for a wonger time dan de soft cheeses. Cheeses dat are cwassified as semi-hard to hard incwude de famiwiar Cheddar, originating in de viwwage of Cheddar in Engwand but now used as a generic term for dis stywe of cheese, of which varieties are imitated worwdwide and are marketed by strengf or de wengf of time dey have been aged. Cheddar is one of a famiwy of semi-hard or hard cheeses (incwuding Cheshire and Gwoucester), whose curd is cut, gentwy heated, piwed, and stirred before being pressed into forms. Cowby and Monterey Jack are simiwar but miwder cheeses; deir curd is rinsed before it is pressed, washing away some acidity and cawcium. A simiwar curd-washing takes pwace when making de Dutch cheeses Edam and Gouda.

Hard cheeses—grating cheeses such as Grana Padano, Parmesan or Pecorino—are qwite firmwy packed into warge forms and aged for monds or years.

Some cheeses are categorized by de source of de miwk used to produce dem or by de added fat content of de miwk from which dey are produced. Whiwe most of de worwd's commerciawwy avaiwabwe cheese is made from cow's miwk, many parts of de worwd awso produce cheese from goats and sheep. Weww-known exampwes incwude Roqwefort (produced in France) and Pecorino (produced in Itawy) from ewe's miwk. One farm in Sweden awso produces cheese from moose's miwk.[6] Sometimes cheeses marketed under de same name are made from miwk of different animaw—Feta stywe cheeses, for exampwe, are made from sheep's miwk in Greece and from cow's miwk ewsewhere.

Soft-ripened cheeses begin firm and rader chawky in texture, but are aged from de exterior inwards by exposing dem to mowd. The mowd may be a vewvety bwoom of P. camemberti dat forms a fwexibwe white crust and contributes to de smoof, runny, or gooey textures and more intense fwavors of dese aged cheeses. Brie and Camembert, de most famous of dese cheeses, are made by awwowing white mowd to grow on de outside of a soft cheese for a few days or weeks. Goat's miwk cheeses are often treated in a simiwar manner, sometimes wif white mowds (Chèvre-Boîte) and sometimes wif bwue.

Washed-rind cheeses are soft in character and ripen inwards wike dose wif white mowds; however, dey are treated differentwy. Washed-rind cheeses are periodicawwy cured in a sowution of sawtwater brine or mowd-bearing agents dat may incwude beer, wine, brandy and spices, making deir surfaces amenabwe to a cwass of bacteria Brevibacterium winens (de reddish-orange smear bacteria) dat impart pungent odors and distinctive fwavors, and produce a firm, fwavorfuw rind around de cheese.[7] Washed-rind cheeses can be soft (Limburger), semi-hard, or hard (Appenzewwer). The same bacteria can awso have some impact on cheeses dat are simpwy ripened in humid conditions, wike Camembert. The process reqwires reguwar washings, particuwarwy in de earwy stages of production, making it qwite wabor-intensive compared to oder medods of cheese production, uh-hah-hah-hah.

Some washed-rind cheeses are awso smear-ripened wif sowutions of bacteria or fungi (most commonwy Brevibacterium winens, Debaryomyces hansenii or Geotrichum candidum[8]), which usuawwy gives dem a stronger fwavor as de cheese matures.[8] In some cases, owder cheeses are smeared on young cheeses to transfer de microorganisms. Many, but not aww, of dese cheeses have a distinctive pinkish or orange coworing of de exterior. Unwike wif oder washed-rind cheeses, de washing is done to ensure uniform growf of desired bacteria or fungi and to prevent de growf of undesired mowds.[9] Notabwe exampwes of smear-ripened cheeses incwude Munster and Port Sawut.

So-cawwed bwue cheese is created by inocuwating a cheese wif Peniciwwium roqweforti or Peniciwwium gwaucum. This is done whiwe de cheese is stiww in de form of woosewy pressed curds, and may be furder enhanced by piercing a ripening bwock of cheese wif skewers in an atmosphere in which de mowd is prevawent. The mowd grows widin de cheese as it ages. These cheeses have distinct bwue veins, which gives dem deir name and, often, assertive fwavors. The mowds range from pawe green to dark bwue, and may be accompanied by white and crusty brown mowds. Their texture can be soft or firm. Some of de most renowned cheeses are of dis type, each wif its own distinctive cowor, fwavor, texture and aroma. They incwude Roqwefort, Gorgonzowa and Stiwton.

Brined or pickwed cheese is matured in a sowution of brine in an airtight or semi-permeabwe container. This process gives de cheese good stabiwity, inhibiting bacteriaw growf even in hot countries.[10] Brined cheeses may be soft or hard, varying in moisture content, and in cowour and fwavour, according to de type of miwk used; dough aww wiww be rindwess, and generawwy taste cwean, sawty and acidic when fresh, devewoping some piqwancy when aged, and most wiww be white.[10] Varieties of brined cheese incwude bryndza, feta, hawwoumi, sirene, and tewemea.[10] Brined cheese is de main type of cheese produced and eaten in de Middwe East and Mediterranean areas.[11]

Processed cheese is made from traditionaw cheese and emuwsifying sawts, often wif de addition of miwk, more sawt, preservatives, and food cowouring. Its texture is consistent, and mewts smoodwy. It is sowd packaged and eider pre-swiced or unswiced, in severaw varieties. Some are sowd as sausage-wike wogs and chipowatas (mostwy in Germany and USA), and some are mouwded into de shape of animaws and objects. It is awso avaiwabwe in aerosow cans in some countries[cwarification needed].

Some, if not most, varieties of processed cheese are made using a combination of reaw cheese waste (which is steam-cweaned, boiwed and furder processed) whey powders, and various mixtures of vegetabwe, pawm oiws or fats. Some processed-cheese swices contain as wittwe as two to six percent cheese; some have smoke fwavours added.